Ride of Rhythm
by 4fireking
Summary: Fifteen year old Royce never knew why his sister left him. Then one day a package shows up in his mailbox. The package invites him to take part in a tournament of Cardfight Vanguard. But unlike his sister he never played Cardfight. What clues and battles will Royce find trying to learn of his sisters' disappearance.
1. Chapter 1

_Prologue_

_" _Sister, will you please teach me the rules of Vanguard?"

" Vanguard. I don't think you have the tenacity to try that game. You might not like it."

" Please, please, please, sister. I want to play like you."

" Okay. I guess there's no harm in that. The first thing you must know about Card Fight Vanguard is your deck must consist of exactly fifty cards. No more; no less."

" Okay."

" A deck may not contain more than 4 of any individual card. The card with alternate images but with the same name will account as the same individual card. The game takes place much like Earth called Cray. In this game we are nothing but spirits. But we're not alone. In the world of Cray there are creatures called vanguard's that come from our deck. We start where we pick a grade 0 unit from our deck and set it face down on your vanguard circle. We shuffle the rest of our cards and place it face down as our deck."

" Really? That sounds so cool, big sister."

" Save all that excitement for when I'm finished speaking. We drew five cards from our deck. We man change our opening hand just once. First we pick any number of cards from our hand, return them to our deck, and shuffle them in until we have five. Say stand and flip your vanguard face-up."

" Hey big sister."

" Yes."

" Can I see that card you won your last tournament with."

" Well okay. But don't hold him too hard. If a card is wrinkled in any way then you can't play it."

" Woah. She's so cool. What did you say her name was? Ganra? Gruda? Granny? Gandaruba. She's Demonic Dragon Berserker Gandaruba. You can have her if you want, bro."

" Really?"

" Of course. Think of her as your first card. Speaking of cards, they all come with Grade, Trigger Icon, Skill Icon, Shield, Text, Clan and Race, Critical, and Power. There's also things you need to learn about the field."

" Like what?"

" Like the Guardian Circle, Trigger Zone, Vanguard Circle, Rear-guard Circle, Drop Zone, Damage Zone, and of course the Hand. But I can't teach you those things now. I have to get going."

" Where were you going again, sister?"

" I'm afraid I can't tell you that, Royce. I have to keep it confidential. You understand the conscience of keeping secrets and how it's wrong, but this is just something I can't share with you."

" Will I ever see you again, big sister?"

" Of course. I'll be back by dinner time. You'll see." Royce's sister leaned over and kissed her brother's forehead. He stuck his tongue out. She laughed at that. " Take care and be a good boy."

Royce's sister opened the door to the house and walked outside. What Royce didn't know was on that day he would never see his sister again.


	2. Chapter 2

" Aichi Sendou. Can you please paraphrase what is written on this board."

" I, er, I, er, I really haven't gotten that far in my studying. I don't know."

All the kids in the class laughed at Aichi Sendou. Who wouldn't Aichi Sendou to some was a great player in Card Fight Vanguard, but to others he was just a wimpy kid. The teacher smacked the board.

" Settle down! Fine. Let's see if anyone of you has the answer." Everyone kept their hands under their desk. No one knew the answer. It was disappointing. " If you have the proclivity to make fun of someone at least have the moxie to answer the question _yourselves_-that's something none of you have. I need the belligerence teach all of you."

The teacher noticed one kid who had his hand up. Royce Morena. Royce was smart, not the smartest kid in the school, but could answer questions right off the bat when asked. There was many things he was impaired with-the inability to hear well, him being easily distracted, and of course his epilepsy.

" Royce, do you know the answer?"

" O-On a sunny is-island a co-co-coconut...fa...fall..."

" A coconut what? I'm going to need you to finish the sentence, Royce. A coconut what?"

" A...A..."

Royce had a strange kind of foveal visions. He also had Myopia ( short sight). It was a condition where light doesn't focus solely on his retina. This made him look at distant objects as out of focus.

Royce had severe headaches. When he focused too hard it seemed like everything was tilting back and forth, and that everything was blurry. Royce lost control every time it happened. He grabbed the sides of his head and screamed.

" Nooooo!"

Royce screaming silenced everyone. His vision just got wilder. So wild he couldn't see. He ran out of the classroom. He didn't care how much trouble he would be in with his parents, how much trouble he would be in with his teachers, he just wanted to get away. He didn't want anyone to see how scared he was.

Luckily for him the janitor was just opening the door to the boiler room. Royce ran into that boiler room and slammed the door. The janitor tried opening the door but it was locked on the outside. On the inside Royce was holding his hands on his head trying to make the blurs go away.

" Stop it!"


	3. Chapter 3

Royce was scared. He was caught in his own predicament. He was shivering, sitting

against the door, he could hear or see anything, his heart felt like a rabbit's chased

by a hungry fox. Royce held his hands on a card.

His sisters card. The card she gave to him. Royce cherished the card. It was the only

thing keeping his insanity stable. When he held the card it felt like Demonic Dragon Berserker Gandaruba, the

dragon of the card was looking over him and watching him. Even though she was always

watching him, it still didn't change the fact he was scared.

Royce felt a knock on the door. Then he felt a second knock. And finally there was a

third knock. Royce recognised the knock. There was only one person who made that

knock.

Royce opened the door. Standing in the doorway was his father. His father was handsome

and tall. He had a strong chin with a cheerful smile. His eyes were maroon; the color

of the ocean. And he had yellow blond hair-he was the polor opposite of Royce:

scared, depressed, frail, small, sad.

Royce was somewhat handsome. His scared face was adorable to some people, his blond

hair may have been more sandy than yellow but still had a gentle coat, and his

reindeer sweater with baggy shorts. Royce's eyes were forest green.

Royce took one step towards his father then took three steps back. He was afraid. When

he was nervous his vision would blur. Royce couldn't hear anything. His father, the

great man he was, he communicated with his fingers.

"** Son, I need you to come out of the closet."**

Royce felt more assured. He took two steps forward, but took another step back. Royce

was still shivering in fear. His father did sign language. He made sure Royce could

see his fingers, moved them around, making words for him to understand.

" **Come on. Trust me. I'm always here for you, son."**

Royce felt like he could trust his father. He took seven steps forward walking into

the arms of his father. His father hugged him. Royce still had his hands on his card.

He felt the hair in his father's chin bristling against his face while he felt those

strong arms around his back.

" Whatever homework Royce has please send it home. He needs to be with me the rest of

the day."


	4. Chapter 4

Royce was in the sanctity of his home. In the painted walls nothing could touch him. Not bullies, not cars, not his blurry vision, not even the plague. His house was the cleanest place to him in the world. It was the cornerstone of immaculate cleansed from peevish nature. However, the one thing that wasn't sanitized was Royce's heart. Some days it was dexterous enough to go on, but other days it was fragile. Sometimes when he thought of life in his house...the smiling face of his sister would pop up. And not only hers but the face of his mother.

Royce was just sitting in a bathtub. He just wanted to have the leisure of being alone. The door was pawed open. From the door his white Labrador Shoe Shine walked in. No matter how old he got Shoe Shine always behaved like the puppy Royce and his father first found. Shoe Shine jumped in the tub.

Water splashed on Royce's face. The next thing Royce knew the dog was licking his face. There were times Royce enjoyed having his dog lick him, mostly because it reminded him of the puppy he once was, but there were times he didn't want Shoe Shine's soft tongue touching his sensitive skin.

There was a knock on Royce's bathroom door-a sound which Royce could not hear. It didn't matter if Royce could hear the sound or not. His father walked into the bathroom fully dressed in his work clothes. Royce sinked his face in the water. Royce blew small bubbles on the surface of the water. There was his father, just as joyful as ever, making hand signals.

" **You need to get outside, Royce. Remember, your not like other kids. Your different. But that's okay. Being different is a good thing. I need you to find different people. I'll take you anywhere you want but you need to tell me that place."**

Royce raised his mouth out of the water. Royce was hesitant. He thought long and hard about where he wanted to go. The mall was too busy for his benefit, he wasn't a fan of fast food, and he didn't play video games like other kids. He kept thinking. Thinking of the infinite possibilities. Only one came to mind. Making hand signals he replied.

" **A card store, please." **


	5. Chapter 5

Royce was at a card shop. Wasn't in anywhere special. It was just a quaint little card shop located in the center of town. Royce remembered how loquacious his sister was about the shop. Royce would often see the card shop on the bus in and from school, but he never once took a look inside.

Today Royce asked his father to drive him there. Royce knew his father was only taking time off his busy schedule because he didn't want his son to feel unloved by him. Royce closed the door. His father leaned his head through the door making hand gestures.

" **I'm going to be at the grocery store down the street. You know my Phone Number. Give me a call when you want me to show up. I won't be long."**

Royce's father drove away. Royce was scared. He was alone, on the sidewalk standing next to a card shop. Royce didn't know what he was going to do. He wasn't like other kids. When someone asked him if he wanted something it was hard for him to answer. Royce took a deep breath and walked towards the entrance.

" Hey, do we get to search for Commander Garry Cannon from my deck?" A kid said inside. Royce could see the lips of a small boy through the window.

" I don't know," a girl much older than Royce said. " Or care."

The inside of the card shop was quaint and not very spacious. There were rows of tables on the far right, a counter on the left, and a bathroom on the back. Sleeping on the counter was a cat. And standing behind the counter was a woman. Royce had the feeling...that he knew her somewhere.


	6. Chapter 6

The girl behind the counter was tall, much taller than Royce, maybe about 5'6", and had long gray hair reaching down her mid back. She was wearing a green apron with a white shirt underneath. Her eyes much like her smile was cold. Her eyes stared without the slightest hint of motion and her mouth looked stern-like she wasn't friendly in the least.

Royce walked up to the girl banging his fist against the counter. The girl gave him the slightest reaction. She put her small back that she was reading down and connected her fingers into a ball. Royce was nervous. One from how cold she looked and the other from how he had problems pronouncing what he wanted to say.

" Hello, would you like to buy anything today?" Royce could hardly speak. His lips were lisp. He made small noises hoping they would come out as words. " I-I...I..."

" I'm sorry but your going to have to speak up. What would you like today, sir?"

It started happening again. Royce's vision became impaired. The color of the store turned red. The counter was red, the girl was red, everything around him became red. As long as Royce looked at the girl his vision wouldn't return to normal. Royce thought there was nothing for him, until he noticed it. On the shelf there was one thing that was blue. Royce pointed at the blue thing.

" That, please."

The girl reached for the thing. Royce's sight returned. The thing he pointed at was a starter deck. A starter deck was what people who play TCG's (trading card game) buy when they need a cheap deck or when their looking for cards found only in the set. The girl scanned the bar code on the starter deck. She typed numbers on the cash register, the clicking of the buttons ringed in Royce's ears, and then she looked at Royce.

" That will be one thousand 'n' five hundred yen, please."

Royce reached into his pockets and pulled out a wallet. Royce reached his hands in the wallet pulling out a handful of yen coins. He tossed the coins on the counter.

" Is this enough?"

" What, are you blind?"

" No, but I am deaf."

The girl gave a weak laugh. " Funny."

" No, I really am deaf."

" What? But you seem to understand everything I'm saying to you."

" Well I do know how to lip read. And I also know a bit about sign language. I can see things far away, the doctors say I have an acute nose that can smell better than the average human beings, and my art teacher says my memory is photographic."

" That's kind of cool. Anyways, enjoy your cards. And if you'd like to test them out, there are kids over there who would love to play you."


	7. Chapter 7

Royce didn't feel well. When he walked up to someone he didn't know he'd always feel goofy. Royce looked at the tables for an opponent. The only people he could see were little kids. Kids who were eight to twelve years old. There were skinny kids, fat kids, kids with freckles, kids with zits, kids with long hair, kids who were bald, kids wearing spectacles, kids with ties, and there were flamboyant looking kids. Royce didn't know how he was going to approach these kids. He looked at the gray haired girl for guidance.

" E-Excuse me, miss," Royce stuttered.

" My name is Misaki," the girl said in her stoic and cold personality. " Misaki Tokura."

" Umm, nice to meet you, Ms. Tokura." Royce bowed his head to Misaki. His father told him when greeting someone you should always bow your head. " My name is Royce. Royce Morena. I hope I'm not too much trouble in your shop."

The girl laughed. Her laugh was short and had slight sarcasm in it. " Your kind of dense. Don't worry, if you do get into trouble I have the allegation of making you clean up after yourself."

" Yes. I'll do whatever you say with the utmost respect."

" Don't have to say it like that. Now why don't you just play with all the other kids."

" I can't. I have problems talking to people."

" You don't seem to have problems talking to me."

" Well, I guess I just feel like I've seen you somewhere before."

" Well it must've been from a dream, because I sure as hell have never seen you before. Don't worry the kids here are very friendly. All you have to do is say ' would you like to play a Vanguard game with me' and they'll challenge you. Unless of course their already playing a game or they just don't want to play with you."

" Okay. Look them in the eyes, shake their hands, and hope they'll respect me. Here I go."

" Break a leg."

" Thanks."

" No, really break a leg. Kids respond to that."

" Eh, thanks. I think."

Royce could think of a thousand scenario's where he asks someone if they would like to challenge him and they agree. Of course the thought of someone neglecting him was still a possibility. Royce could only remember the rules of the game as he reviewed them over and over everyday since his sister left him. Thinking about it, Royce pulled out her card: Demonic Dragon Berserker Gandaruba. Whenever Royce looked at the card his imagination would always go wild. Like this very instant, Royce was teleported into the world of his imagination.

( Royce's imagination)

In Royce's imagination he was standing on a pile of snow on top of a mountain top. Snow was gently falling on Royce's head. Standing on its quadruped legs was the demonic dragon Gandaruba. She looked so fearsome yet so beautiful. She was a fierce beast to some but to Royce she was like a mother to him.

" You wish'th to-speak-to-me, Ru oyce?" Gandaruba drawled. " Speakith your tongue. Thou is listening."

" Gandaruba, I'm starting my first Vanguard battle. But I'm really scared. Do you think maybe you can help me in my first fight."

" Nya, I cannot. I cannot serve thy who's reeks of fear. Admost you must first control what's in your heart before youth can control thee."

" Gandaruba, I don't understand. What does my heart have to do with this game?"

" Only thou can see'th for thee self. We-e-e-e-e is your heart. We, sir. Good day to you, Royce."

Gandaruba flapped her massive dragon wings. She flew away from Royce. He watched as the dragon disappeared from his hind sight. There were still so many questions Royce wanted to ask her, but he knew that she would not answer them. What he did know was he needed to first prove himself before he could use Gandaruba. And in order to prove himself he needed to challenge someone.


	8. Chapter 8

( End of Imagination)

Royce returned to the reality of being inside a quaint shop; a small counter with a stoic cashier, kids playing card games near desks, and a cat sleeping on the counter.  
Royce didn't know who to play. The kids didn't look mean or anything but something about them scared Royce. He never thought he'd be afraid of kids. He was older than them.  
He was suppose to have more vast experience and be more knowledgeable than them, but he was afraid that he was going to make a fool of himself in there games. The game  
was Vanguard. He never played the game against anyone.

" _ Which one should I face. There's so many."_

Royce noticed one kid that caught his eye. He looked tough. He is a slim, rather short boy with blonde hair kept in a neat bowl cut, with a few wayward strands covering his forehead,  
and others jutting upwards on top of his head; he had large dark eyes initial attire consisted of a white shirt,  
with its sleeves and lower legs adorned by cross-like motifs outlined in a light color. And he wore brown loafers.

" Alright, five wins in a row!" The kid gloated. Royce had to make sure he was facing his lips when he talked. " No one can beat me. I'm invincible. Who's next?"

The boy glanced at two kids standing behind him. Both the kids flinched at the boy's dreary eyes. Since he already defeated five people in a row they were afraid  
of him.

" Sorry, but I left my cards at home," one of the boys said, even though it was obvious he had his deck. A deck box was attached to a bandolier belt around his waist.

" And I don't even play Vanguard," the other boy said rubbing his head sheepishly. " I'm more of a Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon card player. Sorry."

" _I get it. Their all afraid. Their afraid of losing to me. Huh?"_ The boy noticed a much taller boy, a teenager, looking at him. " Hello. Do you want to battle?"  
The boy just stared at him without saying a word. " Hello. I'm talking to you."

" My daddy said I'm not suppose to talk to strangers unless we're acquainted," the boy replied.

" I'm a stranger?"

" My name's Royce. Royce Morena. Who are you?"

" You really don't know who I am?"

" Eh, is your name Royce too?"

" My name is Uricha. Uricha Henachi. I am the greatest Vanguard player in the world."

" Well now that we're no longer strangers I guess that makes us acquainted." Royce sat down on the other end of Uricha's table. He pulled out his starter deck. Royce  
quickly ripped the box open taking out the instruction book and the fifty card deck inside. Royce laid his deck on the Deck part of the mat. " I would like to play you,  
please."


	9. Chapter 9

The first thing Uricha and Royce did was look through their decks for a Grade 0 monster.

" This one looks cute. I choose Red Chicken"

Royce placed his Grade 0 monster on the Vanguard Circle. A rooster wearing a silver crown with  
a red ruby in the center and an Aztec necklace around its neck. When Royce stared at the card  
he could almost see it standing almost one hundred percent visible.

Name: Victory Maker

Unit: Trigger

Grade/Skill: Grade 0/ Boost

Power: 5000

Critical: Plus 1

Shield: 5000

Nation: United Sanctuary

Clan: Oracle Think Tank

Race: High Beast

Trigger: +5000 Power

Card Flavor: It is a good omen. A herald of victory.

" Red Chicken? The cards name is Victory Maker. Don't you know how to read?"

" I-I do. I just like the name Red Chicken. It sounds nice."

" Whatever. I choose Armed Liberator, Gwydion."

Uricha placed his own Grade 0 monster in the Vanguard Circle. His was a man wearing purple-yellow armor  
with a helmet over his head and a large sword in his hands. In Royce's imagination his creature was  
slashing his sword side by side.

Name: Armed Liberator, Gwydion

Unit: Trigger Unit

Grade/Skill: Grade 0/ Boost

Power: 5000

Critical: Plus 1

Shield: 5000

Nation: United Sanctuary

Clan: Gold Paladin

Race: Gnome

Trigger: + 5000 Power

Card Flavor: This is a new item. Can you master it?

With two Grade 0's on the field the game could begin.

Royce was slow. This was his first time playing against someone. From what he remembered  
he was suppose to shuffle his deck, give it to the opponent for him to shuffle, and the  
opponent would give his deck back to him. But when Royce shuffled a few of his cards flew  
out. Royce was embarrased. He grabbed the scattered cards and placed them back into his deck.  
He had the choice whether he wanted to shuffle it again or not. Both Royce drew five cards from their deck.

" Which one of us is going to go first?" Uricha asked. Royce couldn't hear him as his eyes  
were on the cards. One of the kids shaked Royce's shoulders. This time Royce looked at Uricha.  
" Which-one-of-us-will-go-first?"

" I think maybe you should go first."

" If you insist." Uricha drew a card. " I ride my Blackmane Witch for my  
Armed Liberator, Gwydion."

Uricha's Armed Liberator Gwydion glowed bright white. Gwydion was sinked into the  
ground. From the ground came another monster. Royce didn't know why she was called  
Blackmane. She was a very beautiful woman. She wore a rainbow tunic with a green witches'  
coat. A helmet that looked like a bird and green wings sticking out of the helmet. In the  
girl's hand was a staff.

Name: Blackmane Witch

Unit: Normal Unit

Grade/Skill: Grade 1/ Boost

Power: 6000

Critical: 1

Shield: 5000

Nation: United Sanctuary

Clan: Gold Paladin

Race: Human

Trigger: None

Card Flavor's: Blessed are the true knights. Despair to those who do not qualify.

Effect: [AUTO]. [Choose another of your «Gold Paladin» rear-guards, and retire  
it]. When this unit is placed on (VC) or (RC), if you have a «Gold Paladin»  
Vanguard, you may pay the cost. If you do, look at the top of your deck, search  
for up to one «Gold Paladin» from among them, call it to an open (RC), and put the  
rest on the bottom of your deck.

" Call. With Call I can summon as many monsters from my hand as long as their Grade is  
equal to or lower than my monster. I summon Little Battler, Tron!"

In most people's eyes Uricha just placed a card on his rear-guard. However, in Royce's  
imagination he saw the card glowing. The monster that appeared was a small boy with blue  
hair and blue skin. A purple bang set up out of the monsters hair. The monster carried  
a giant blue axe.

Name: Little Battler, Tron

Unit: Normal Unit

Grade/Skill: Grade 1

Power: 6000

Critical: 1

Shield: 5000

Nation: United Sanctuary

Clan: Gold Paladin

Race: Giant

Trigger: None


	10. Chapter 10

Royce was having that feeling. That feeling where his imagination went wild. When his imagination went wild there was nothing he could do to stop it. It was like he was travelling to a new dimension.

XXX

Royce felt so cold. His hair was frozen. Even his feet were cold. Royce wasn't wearing any shoes. At least in the card shop he had shoes on, but when he looked at his feet he was wearing sandals. Not only his feet but also his clothes. They felt heavier than they did before. Royce saw a pond. Surrounded by snow was a clear, unfrozen pond. Royce ran to the pond. He wanted to know why his clothes felt so heavy and he could only know by looking at himself.

Royce saw his image. He reverted to a grey high-collared short-sleeved shirt. There was a small crest on the right side of his shirt. His hair hang over his forehead. A belt sash was tied around his waist . And his shoes were switched to sandals. Royce didn't know why his imagination was acting like this.

Royce could feel someone or something. Something was breathing on the back of his neck. Someone was touching his chest. Royce saw them. Behind him he saw what looked like a little girl holding a chicken. The chicken however reminded him of his Victory Maker. And the little girl was wearing a blue cloak, a blue Arabian keffiyeh. Also, she leant on a giant black axe behind her.

" Under my tutelage you will learn how to control your gifts," the girl said.

" W-Who are you?" Royce asked.

" Alive. I am alive because I am strong. But we are facing an enemy. Your prodigious assets are the only things that can save us in the war."

" W-War?"

" It is us Oracle Think Tank against the Gold Paladin's. They will come for us. Only you can depend us with your expertise's, leader."

" L-Leader?"

" Do you have what it takes to lead us against these naïve enemies, leader? Do you have what it takes to stand strong in the presence of thee enemies? Will you fight with us until you have reached your limits?"

" I-I…I guess."

" Good. Do us all a favor. Stay alive."


	11. Chapter 11

" S-Stay alive?"

" Must you continue to ask questions? You're the commander? You must lead your troops into battle. Ride them to tomorrow."

XXX

" I still have one more monster I wish to Call," Royce saw Uricha slam a card from his hand to the field. " I summon Lightning Hammer Wielding Exorcist Knight!"

Royce's imagination sparked when he saw Uricha place a card into his rear-guard. Lightning came out of the card and sparked all over the field. Like Uricha most couldn't see the little hellion who appeared from that card. A man with thunder-hair, bronze dragon armor, carrying a giant hammer with purple electricity surging through the jagged area's and two lightning purple eyes looking through the hammer.

Name: Lightning Hammer Wielding Exorcist Knight

Unit Type: Normal Unit

Grade/Skill: Grade 1/Boost

Power: 4000

Critical: 1

Shield: 5000

Nation: Dragon Empire

Clan: Narukami

Trigger: None

Card Flavor: Those clansmen use the seals as their own power.

Effect: [AUTO](RC):[Soul Blast (1)] When this unit boosts a unit with " Dungaree" in its card name, you may pay the cost. If you do, the boosted unit gets [Power]+6000 until end of that battle.

" I've had my fun. Show me what you can do, noob. And in case you can't hear me I'll repeat myself. Show me what you can do noob, ya noob."

" _What am I going to do? This is the first time I've ever played." _Royce could hear a voice. The voice of the same girl in his imagination who said she would be his tutelage. Royce couldn't believe his eyes. In his hand he saw that same girl with that axe she carried. " What the heck_. _I summon Battle Sister, Maple!"

XXX

Royce was climbing up a hill of snow. Following him was Maple. She had more physical endurance than Royce, which was why she climbed ahead of him. When the snow fell it bounced off her chest.

Royce and Maple reached the top they saw him. The commander of the Golden Paladin's. They stared at Blackmane Witch. But she was really Uricha wearing his armor. Royce and Maple were going to fight him and his army of Golden Paladin's.


End file.
